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Court allows 7 foreigners in drone warfare case to go home
In Short
The NIA had arrested them in a case allegedly involving a drone-warfare training camp linked to ethnic armed groups in Myanmar
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New Delhi: A Delhi court has allowed seven foreign nationals arrested in connection with a case being probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to travel to their home countries in the United States and Ukraine, saying the right to travel abroad is an extension of fundamental rights.
The NIA had arrested them in a case allegedly involving a drone-warfare training camp linked to ethnic armed groups in Myanmar. Special NIA Judge Prashant Sharma, noted that the court had earlier discharged six Ukrainian citizens under sections 21 (penalty for unauthorised entry) and 23 (penalty for visa overstay and general contraventions) of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, on September 18, while US national Matthew Aaron Van Dyke was discharged on September 25.
The court discharged them after taking note of the compounding of offences by the FRRO. The FRRO had on September 18 compounded the offences by imposing a fine of Rs 5.5 lakh on each. Judge Sharma noted that applications had been filed on behalf of all accused persons for release of passport and permission to travel abroad.
“Admittedly, investigation with respect to offences under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) is going on. NIA will take some time to conclude said investigation and this court cannot direct NIA to conclude said investigation, within a particular time, as per law,” the judge said.
He said the NIA did not claim that physical presence of the seven accused was needed in the near future to complete the investigation. “Further, the right to travel abroad is an extension of fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Constitution, as per the law, which cannot be taken lightly and a balance has to be struck,” Judge Sharma said.
He noted that the accused persons have shown willingness to join the investigation, as and when asked by NIA. “Therefore, viewed from all possible legal and factual angles, I find merits in the present application,” the judge said, allowing them to go abroad, to the USA and Ukraine for one month only, to be calculated from the date they board flights, subject to certain conditions,” the judge said.
He directed them to join the investigation through video conference or physically as demanded by the NIA, asking them to furnish details of their residential addresses, working mobile numbers and e-mails to NIA within 24 hours.
